Open mike 02/03/2025
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6:00 am, March 2nd, 2025 - 29 comments
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End of 5 Eyes? this is just speculation…
With the apparent demise of a US led world Western alliance, 5 Eyes may soon become 4 Eyes–UK, Canada, Australia, NZ. Will the NSA turn off the tap from their end…some pundits think so, but the yanks do get intel in the other direction too so if they are willing to forgo that then it really is a change in world order.
It would be nice to see Aotearoa NZ leave 5 Eyes on a principled basis, but if global events cause it, lets take it and move on to an independent status.
Let's hope so.
https://www.gcsb.govt.nz/news/gcsb-to-remove-dishes-and-radomes-at-waihopai-station
"Trump’s national security adviser says Zelensky “has not gotten the memo that this is a new sheriff in town.”"
https://www.stuff.co.nz/world-news/360598851/we-stand-you-uk-pm-tells-zelensky-ahead-crunch-defence-summit-london
The cowboy western analogy is apt for a description of Trump's posing as a sheriff- only in the movies, as they say.
The sheriff here is pointing his piece at the wrong man. He confronts him in public backed by his deputies, and after a very one-sided word-slinging shouting match bans him from town…… after welcoming him.
The sheriff knew that the judge would throw out the charges and award damages to the defendant so let him go. The sheriff, thankfully, is not the judge.
What is actually closer to the western analogy is that Putin is the bad guy come to town with his gang and Zelensky is the mayor who dons the sheriff's badge and meets him on the outskirts of town having deputised the local citizens.
Who in this scenario is the store keeper in the next town who wants to set up his business in mayor Zelensky's town in cahoots with the land-hungry crooked rancher Putin?
Is Trump the whining old town cur, limping along the sidewalk baring his teeth and slinking off down the alley by the newspaper office when the shouting begins, to bark in the shadows at a stray fox?
Were this story set rather in the town saloon, the lead story summary in the Judgment City Times might read, "Shout-out at the White House. President plays his cards. Trumped by an arms-folded guest player who kept his aces hidden, he refuses to deal another hand. Instead, he takes the pot and trespasses his former partner. Cigars all round."
..taking his 'pot'…seems a bit unnecessary..?
The pot is the prize, the raison d’être, the assurance you are a winner after all, the narcotic self-dealt and all consuming, won in the illusory smoke of a cheap joint.
When the gun-smoke clears, in the aftermath of the shooting, who takes the pot?
Who always wins? The bank, the barman and the undertaker….
Will Trump Pardon Elizabeth Holmes?
Seems old Ben was right.
Benjamin Franklin to the Federal Convention
17 Sept. 1787
[…]
In these sentiments, Sir, I agree to this Constitution with all its faults, if they are such; because I think a general Government necessary for us, and there is no form of Government but what may be a blessing to the people if well administered, and believe farther that this is likely to be well administered for a course of years, and can only end in Despotism, as other forms have done before it, when the people shall become so corrupted as to need despotic Government, being incapable of any other.
https://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/a7s3.html
British politician/philosophe Rory Stewart claims that, under Trump, the U.S. will "no longer be a force for good"…
https://nitter.poast.org/markcurtis30/status/1895859776913035590#m
Rimmer and co will be all over this.
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:j7tdfjsbop2oq7cghfbdwvqq/post/3lizq6fc2nk27?
https://www.bloodinthemachine.com/p/whats-really-behind-elon-musk-and
Good.
.
Norwegian fuel company Haltbakk Bunkers has announced it will cease supplying fuel to U.S. military forces in Norway and American ships docking in Norwegian ports, citing dissatisfaction with recent U.S. policy towards Ukraine.
In a strongly worded statement, the company criticised a televised event involving U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance, referring to it as the “biggest shitshow ever presented live on TV.” Haltbakk Bunkers praised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for his restraint, accusing the U.S. of “putting on a backstabbing TV show” and declaring that the spectacle “made us sick.”
As a result, the company stated: “We have decided to immediately STOP as fuel provider to American forces in Norway and their ships calling Norwegian ports. No Fuel to Americans!” Haltbakk Bunkers also urged Norwegians and Europeans to follow their lead, concluding their statement with the slogan “Slava Ukraina” in support of Ukraine.
https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/norwegian-fuel-supplier-refuses-u-s-warships-over-ukraine/
Because it's unclear at whose cities and bases the US will be pointing its floating armaments.
Funny how the 'massive wealth' in rare earths under Ukraine has never been brought up before. This explains why this 'mineral wealth' popped up out of thin air – it's just a geological maybe, a political sideshow to the whole Ukraine clusterf**k.
https://www.politico.eu/article/donald-trump-bad-mineral-deal-ukraine-volodymyr-zelenskyy/
Senator Gramm (Graham of S Carolina) told Trump about them a few weeks ago, and said Trump had no knowledge of this. One reason he was a sack full of snakes when no deal was signed after the meeting.
The unspoken detail, the experts in mining rare earth minerals (under the earth or sea) are the Chinese.
The easiest thing to do would be to send earth over to China and have them extract the minerals.
They're still valuable enough to attract Putin in 2022.
Never listed as one of the reasons for invasion. Not saying it wasn't, but if it was he'd be objecting to the Trump deal.
Putin offered the USA access to rare earth minerals under Russia and occupied Ukraine.
One of the reasons why the hegemonic US spent 3yrs and a lot of money on a proxy war. To weaken Russia, and encourage regime change.
It's always about resources, money and power. Never freedom and democracy, I've been watching them in action for 70 years.
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/ranked-top-10-countries-by-value-of-all-their-natural-resources/
Russia leads the pack with natural resources valued at $75 trillion, largely consisting of coal, natural gas, oil, and rare earth metals.
FACT CHECK.
Russia invaded Ukraine.
It's economy is smaller than that of Canada.
China dominates in rare earth minerals (important in modern technology), it has the largest of any nation and has more investments in this area worldwide than anyone else.
I said that. (4:40pm)
Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) can be used which paints a different picture about economy size. List of countries by GDP (PPP) has Canada less than half Russia.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)
From Investopedia:
"Purchasing power parity (PPP) is a popular macroeconomic analysis metric used to compare economic productivity and standards of living between countries.
PPP involves an economic theory that compares different countries' currencies through a "basket of goods" approach. That is, PPP is the exchange rate at which one nation's currency would be converted into another to purchase the same and same amounts of a large group of products"
The Visual Capitalist site has ranked countries by the value of all their natural resources. Not just rare earths. Everyone knows that China is light years ahead of everyone else in the rare metal area.
A petro-gangster state with nukes.
According to Investopedia Russia has the 11th largest economy in the world, GDP – $1.48 trillion, and represents 1.31 percent of the world’s economy. It’s GDP per capita is $10,126.
The US has a GDP of $20.89 trillion, around 14 times the size of Russia’s and GDP per capita is $63,413.
Three U.S. states have larger GDPs than Russia. California – $3.1 trillion, twice that of Russia, Texas -$1.78 trillion and New York $1.7 trillion.
The EU, combined GDP is about $15.28 trillion, and the US represent more than 40 percent of the world GDP.
And like the Stalin era industrialisation of Russia, exploiting natural resources will again need western investment and expertise.
/
For context the world burns roughly US$3 trillion worth of oil every year.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/2/28/mapping-ukraines-rare-earth-and-critical-minerals
https://www.mining.com/op-ed-unpacking-ukraines-trillion-dollar-rare-earths-myth/
I laughed reading your link Francesca.
The link mentions Afghanistan – the issue then and now is security.
https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/mining-influence-chinas-mineral-ambitions-taliban-led-afghanistan
I thought the more informed consensus was that there is fuck all rare earth in Ukraine.It was Zelensky's attempt to lure Trump in
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/02/24/ukraine-rare-earths-do-not-exist/
The Liberals are back in the race in Canada and Labour (albeit with others) would be re-elected in the UK. The Trump effect.
https://bsky.app/profile/vuinotvooey.bsky.social/post/3ljebac5q5k2h
Reform goes from 5 seats now to 175 in that poll. That is a worry.
If that poll held Starmer would be beholden to the SNP which would push him leftwards and have many other implications.